My Body My Temple : 7DayPositivityChallenge Day 2

I know, I know, you've probably seen enough posts on appreciating the body. I'm not simply jumping on the bandwagon though. After receiving a third bite from my beloved fur ball Bheema, I've had to switch from being righthanded, to doing things with my left hand again for a couple of days. Fortunately, I can use both hands again now, with minimal care for the wound.

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Don't be fooled by his good looks! ;)

This morning I was pondering on what I was thankful for today .. and I realised how I only seem to appreciate my body when things go wrong, or I'm compromised in mobility somehow. That's when I think about how glad I am that I have another arm to fall back on, or how I appreciate my knees when a bout of bursitis hits. In fact I only seem to be aware of my joints when they hurt - but up till then, I happily jump, run, walk, dance and do yoga without a care in the world. And how much I value life when I fear losing it. Let's not even go there - nothing major, just a couple of close shaves in the car, but it sure makes you appreciate life though doesn't it?!

The thing is, the greatest abundance is not our bank account, our steemit wallet, the nice house we live in, nor all that fantastic travels we've been on. None of it matters when you can't enjoy it, and the one thing we have to enjoy life is our body. So obvious, yet so overlooked!

Constantly putting it down when the scale spits out an arbitrary number, or can't quite do certain physical movements to perfection and immediately put ourselves down for not being more healthier, fitter, or stronger. I think we are all quite well educated on the concept of body shaming so I won't delve any further into that. The thing I would like to highlight though, is that it is NOT the media, it is not our family or friends it is not anything on the outside. At the end of the day, the person buying into it is US, or rather ME.

How on earth can I blame someone else when I refuse to take responsibility for upholding the sanctity of my own temple of existence.

I saw this message on Facebook today, and it really hit home.

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At some point, regardless of the stories we've been told, the deep set conditioning we picked up, or the beliefs we hold onto, the blame train stops with us. I have to take responsibility for judging my body, because the only time I would get upset with any form of judgement is because somewhere deep within I have a tiny bit of shame lurking.

It is a real effort and work in progress for me personally. I am at my heaviest weight ever, since my bout of Dengue and have had people ask why I've put on weight, or that I look chubbier, or whatever other creative phrases in the name of concern come my way ( as you can guess, much of that was already a running commentary in my head).

The truth is, I don't know how to carry this new weight, as most of it is from water retention. My joints are all kinds of wobbly, and I actually have to go up on stage and facilitate yoga classes on a weekly basis with this new body.

It took a lot of mental effort to do it the first few times. I literally had to look at myself in the mirror and say I love you unconditionally some days. I look at my joints and mentally forgive them. You see I haven't exactly been kind to my body.

As someone trained in Indian Classical dance, I spent hours in my youth and parts of my adulthood stomping away on the ground, jumping, turning and whatever else without concern for the knees, ankles, hip or back. Whenever I'm injured all I care about is getting back out there. Only as an adult, ahem, a much older adult am I realising the follies of my youth. It makes me want to share what I can with the younger students in my classes, on how to better take care of their body.

One thing I am determined this year is to share Yoga despite the injuries I'm currently nursing. I have learnt not to push my body into positions it won't go into, but neither am I going to shame my body for it. To those who wish to learn, I can show and instruct with care. But to those in the same boat, I am able to show modifications, and by modelling compassion for my body, hopefully I can inspire others to do the same for themselves.

And I am so grateful for all the things I experienced with this body, apart from my day to day activities, I will always hold in a place very close to my heart, how this body is able to produce art - in dance, in writing, in yoga, in hiking, in cooking, in meditating, in feeling love, appreciation, gratitude, compassion, joy and so much more. Makes life truly spectacular!

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Thank you Lord for this Temple to move about and appreciate all that is beautiful in this Universe!

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The Rules:

The 'rules' are fairly simple, for this Steemit challenge, which I do hope transcends into our everyday life - in finding more positivity in the world.

1. Write a post about something you have to be positive about today - this could be anything from being thankful for your current situation, someone being nice to you, being thankful for your friends and family, or even being thankful for the opportunity you have been given here on Steemit - just keep it positive :)
2. Do this for 7 days in a row if you get nominated.
   From @kchitrah: Or do your best with 7 such posts spaced close together - I know that's what I'll be doing
3. Mention three people who should do this on each day.
4. Tag it with #7daypositivitychallenge and include these rules at the bottom of your post
   (Tip: You need to put the # in front of 7daypositivitychallenge or it will not let you use the tag.)
5. Include a picture of something positive (related to your story if possible).

Today, I'm tagging @pretty.dorky @annekins @kaerpedium.

Though the choice always remains in the hands of those nominated to take this up, I hope that this might be an inspiration to find more beauty, love and opportunity to express gratitude everyday. As it is a nice way to move through a week, or more (should we take a couple days in between the posts).

Check out this challenge by @conradt here